Manchester United will be left without Luke Shaw for a number of important matches in the race for a place in the top four. Ralph Rangnik confirmed at a press conference on Friday that the full-back was having screws removed from his leg after surgery to remove a broken leg in 2015 and could take longer than originally expected.
Rangnik said: “It looks like he will be out for at least another four weeks, if not five weeks, so I think it will be difficult for him to be available for one of the remaining seven games.” This means that others will have to step up in a time of need for United.
The obvious choice to replace Shaw is Alex Teles, as he was the main option for rotation under the Left Back Rankings, but some fans are wondering if United should stick with the Brazilian. These doubts were further confirmed on Saturday with his performance against Norwich.
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The Brazilian jumped out with an assist; his corner kick to Cristiano Ronaldo and United’s second goal, but his work on defense was more worrying. Both goals were probably Teles’ fault; the first left his man open on the far post, allowing an easy header, and in the second he was caught out of position to give Teemu Pukki a place and time to shoot and score.
And these were just the mistakes he was punished for, as in a number of other cases he was caught by an obvious overlap by Norwich. This also applies to Diogo Dalot, who played on the right.
The problem is that Dalot has time on his side at only 22 years old; Teles at 29 doesn’t. With Manchester Evening News realizing that Eric ten Haag is ready to take on Old Trafford with a long-term project, Teles can see his future in jeopardy.
United are expected to invest in the Ten Hag project over the summer, while Brandon Williams will return from a valuable loan to Norwich City. Another youngster, Alvaro Fernandez, was on the bench on Saturday and impressed at the U23s.
What seemed like a good deal to sign with Telles to compete with Shaw now looks like another example of not enough scouts to judge United’s suitability. This is the way of thinking that the club will have to deal with in the future in order to succeed under Ten Hag.
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